At least 3 killed in Spanish military aircraft crash

At least three people were killed and two more seriously injured when a Spanish military aircraft crashed close to Seville airport on Saturday.

Local media reports said that the incident happened at around 13:00 local time as the aircraft, an Airbus 400M, crashed while on exercise, practicing take-offs and landings.

It happened shortly after take-off with Seville Air-Traffic control notifying by twitter the crew had advised them "they had a technical fault before impact."

There is some confusion about the total number of casualties, all of whom are confirmed to be Spanish, after Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy commented during a political meeting in Tenerife that "8 or 10 people had died."

Meanwhile two people have been confirmed as seriously injured; one with a stomach injury and the other with a head injury, burns and various fractures. They have been taken to two separate hospitals in Seville.

Witnesses describe a "brutal and terrifying explosion," which caused a "huge column of smoke" over the airport.

The airport was closed for two hours to allow emergency services to work, and three flights due to land in Seville were diverted to Malaga and Jerez de la Frontera. Endit